Immigration as Learning and Becoming: A Critical Review of Existing Literature (Stage 3, 4:29 PM)

• In Event: e-Lightning Ed-Talk Session 9 - Stage 3

Abstract

Learning rarely appears as a central issue in research on immigration. When it does appear, it is often treated as a way of overcoming practical or institutional challenges as opposed to being a dynamic, often personal process of negotiating circumstances and redefining one’s identity. This paper critically reviews literature to examine how learning is represented in studies on immigration and reframe immigration itself as a process of learning and becoming. After analyzing 21 peer-reviewed articles, our analysis revealed that immigrant learning is narrowly framed around practical outcomes such as credentials, employment and acculturation. We then identified four key features of immigrant learning. The study calls for more holistic understandings of immigrant learning that recognize its situated, relational and identity-shaping process.

Authors

• Seda Musaoglu Aydin, Simon Fraser University

• Engida Hailye Gebre, Simon Fraser University